Chief Secretary enjoys 'fastest 60 seconds' at drift show

Motorsports enthusiasts flocked to the Parade Grounds, Bacolet, on Sunday evening for a drift show hosted by the Tobago Motorsport Association.

The grounds was packed to capacity as people came from all over to enjoy an afternoon of drifting.

Chief among the fans was THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine, who shocked the crowd by getting into a car for a first-hand drift experience courtesy one of the racers, Jaraad Stewart.

In a Facebook post on Monday, he said: “The fastest 60 seconds in my life!

"Just like many of you, I have been trying to participate in as many of the available activities in Tobago this Easter weekend. From church services, to theatre productions, to gospel concerts, brunches, cricket and races, I have been hopping in and out of activities. The island is teeming with life and economic activity and there is a still a lot more to come."

Augustine said he took advantage of the opportunity to drift "in the absence of my disapproving wife and without prior notice to my friends, the Executive, protocol and security."

As he stepped out the car, Augustine gave a thumbs up as he unfastened his helmet.

Back in February, Augustine granted permission to the motor sports fraternity on the island to use the parade grounds for their activities.

He said they would be allowed once all safety best practices were maintained and no permanent fixtures were installed on the open ground.

He noted that there is need for the island to have a proper motor sport facility.

“If for nothing else, this speaks for why Tobago needs to move to having some sort of facility for motorsport, clearly it is an attraction. I did give an indication that we would look into the possibility of FIA-certified sports facility for the motorsport industry and that is something we plan to build out in phases.”